The 34th Infantry Division is a division in the Army
National Guard that participated in World War I, World War II and continues to serve today,
with most of the Division part of the Minnesota and IowaNational Guard. It
holds the distinctions of being the first US Division deployed to
Europe in World War II, and having spent more days in combat and
having taken more enemy-defended hills than any other U.S. Army
Division in the war.

The division takes its name from the shoulder sleeve insignia
designed for a 1917 training camp contest by American regionalist
artist Marvin Cone,
who was then a soldier enlisted in the unit.[1] Cone's
design evoked the desert training grounds of Camp Cody, New Mexico, by superimposing a red steer
skull over a black Mexican water jug called an "olla."[2] In World War I, the unit
was called the "Sandstorm Division." German troops in World War II,
however, called the U.S. division's soldiers "Red Devils" and "Red
Bulls"[3] ;
the division later officially adopted the latter nickname.

The United States Army Rangers
also trace their lineage back to the 34th Division. The modern
incarnation of the Rangers were developed from 34th Infantry
volunteers in Ireland under the command of Major William O. Darby. Of the original five
hundred twenty WWII Rangers, two hundred eighty one came from the
34th Infantry Division.

During the Civil War, the First Minnesota
Regiment, today the 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry Regiment (2/135)
was the first volunteer regiment to offer its services to President
Lincoln. The men of the 1st Minnesota are most remembered for their
actions on the late afternoon of July 2, 1863, during the second
day's fighting at Gettysburg, resulting in the prevention of a
serious breach in the Union defensive line on Cemetery Ridge.

Contents

World War
I

The division was established as the 34th Division of the National Guard in
August 1917, consisting of units from North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota. The 34th Division arrived in
France in October 1918 but was too late to see action in World War
I as the war ended the following month.

Overseas: Most of the division personnel was sent to other
organizations.

Commanders:

Maj. Gen. A. P. Blacksom (25 August 1917)

Brig. Gen. F. G. Mauldin (18 September 1917)

Maj. Gen. A. P. Blacksom (10 December 1917)

Brig. Gen. F. G. Mauldin (8 May 1918)

Brig.. Gen. John A. Johnston (26 October 1918).

Returned to U. S. and inactivated: December 1918.

World War
II

34th ID Soldiers at Camp Cody, NM on August 18th, 1918.

In common with other U.S. Army divisions the 34th was
reorganised from a square to a triangular division before seeing
combat. The division's three infantry regiments became the 133rd,
135th, and 168th Infantry Regiments.

After continuing its training in Northern Ireland, the 34th Infantry
Division saw its first combat in North Africa on 8 November 1942. As a
member of the Eastern Task force, which included two brigades of
the British 78th Infantry
Division, and two British Commando units, they landed at Algiers and seized the port and
outlying airfields. Elements of the Division took part in numerous
subsequent engagements in Tunisia during the Allied build-up,
notably at Sened Station, Faid Pass, Sbeitla, and Fondouk Gap. In
April 1943 the Division assaulted Hill 609, capturing it on 1 May
1943, and then drove through Chouigui Pass to Tebourba and
Ferryville.

The Red Bull in the Winter Line of Pantano, Italy -- November 29 to
December 3, 1943

The Division then trained for the Salerno
landing. The 151st FA Bn. went in on D-day, 9 September 1943, at
Salerno, while the rest of the Division followed on 25 September.
Contacting the enemy at the Calore River, 28
September 1943, the 34th, part of U.S. II Corps, drove
north to take Benevento, crossed the winding Volturno three times
in October and November, assaulted Mount Patano and took one of its
four peaks before being relieved, 9 December 1943. In January 1944,
the Division was back in II Corps front line battering at the Bernhardt Line
defenses. Thankfully, after bitter fighting through the Mignano
Gap, they were able to take Mount Trocchio without resistance as
the German defenders withdrew to the main prepared defenses of the
Gustav Line. On 24 January 1944, during the
First Battle of Monte Cassino
they pushed across the Rapido River into the hills behind and
attacked Monastery Hill which dominated the town of Cassino. While they nearly
captured the objective, in the end their attacks on the monastery
and the town failed. The performance of 34 Division in the
mountains is considered to rank as one of the finest feats of arms
carried out by any soldiers during the war. In return they
sustained losses of about 80% in the Infantry battalions. They were
relieved from their positions 11-13 February 1944. Eventually, it
took the combined force of five allied infantry divisions to finish
what the 34th nearly accomplished on its own.

After rest and rehabilitation, it landed in the Anzio
beachhead, 25 March 1944, maintaining defensive positions until the
offensive of 23 May, when it broke out of the beachhead, took Cisterna, and raced to Civitavecchia and
Rome. After a short rest, the
Division drove across the Cecina River to liberate Livorno, 19 July 1944, and
continued on to take Mount Belmonte in October during the fighting
on the Gothic Line.
Digging in south of Bologna
for the winter, the 34th jumped off, 15 April 1945, and captured
Bologna on 21 April. Pursuit of the routed enemy to the French
border was halted on 2 May upon the German surrender in Italy.

The Division participated in six major Army campaigns in North
Africa and Italy. The Division is credited with amassing 517 days
of front line combat, more than any other U.S. division. One or
more 34th Division units were engaged in actual combat with the
enemy on 611 days. This would have been 1st Battalion, 133rd
Infantry, the IRONMAN battalion. This battalion still holds the
record over the rest of the United States Army for days in combat.
The division was credited with more combat days than any other
division in the war. The 34th Division suffered 3,737 killed in
action, 14,165 wounded in action, and 3,460 missing in action, for
a total of 21,362 battle casualties. Casualties of the division are
considered to be the highest of any division in the theater when
daily per capita fighting strengths are considered. There is little
doubt the division took the most enemy-defended hills of any
division in the European Theater. The division's men were awarded
10 Medals of Honor, 98 Distinguished Service Crosses, one
Distinguished Service Medal, 1,153 Silver Stars, 116 Legion of
Merit medals, one Distinguished Flying Cross, 2,545 Bronze Stars,
54 Soldier Medals, 34 Air Medals, with duplicate awards of 52 oak
leaf clusters, and 15,000 Purple Hearts. More recently, in 2000 the
Minnesota Legislature renamed all of Interstate 35 in Minnesota the "34th
Division (Red Bull) Highway," in honor of the Division and its
service in the World Wars.[4]

Cold War to
present

A Red Bull Soldier in Al Anbar Province, Iraq.

The 34th Infantry Division was inactivated on 3 November 1945.
The Division was reformed within the Iowa and Nebraska National Guards in
1946–7, but it disbanded again in 1963, being replaced in part by
the 67th Infantry Brigade. It also retained its Division HQ as a
Command HQ to supervise training of combat and support units in the
former division area for some years. The 47th Infantry
Division (which had never seen combat) was active at St Paul,
Minn., by 1963, as the National Guard combat division covering the
former 34th's area.

The division was reactivated as a National Guard division
(renaming the 47th Division) for Minnesota and Iowa on 10 February
1991 upon the fiftieth anniversary of its federal activation for
World War II. At that point the Division transitioned into a Medium
Division, with a required strength of 18,062 soldiers. The 47th
Division was re-flagged back to the 34th Infantry Division (Medium)
in 1989.

A Red Bull Soldier in Iraq.

Currently, the 34th Infantry "Red Bull" Division is ranked No. 1
of the eight National Guard Divisions with regard to key readiness
indicators. The 34th Infantry Division was the first National Guard
Division to transform to the Army's modular and expeditionary
Brigade Combat Team Structure. The Division's force structure has
grown and is now spread across several midwest states (Minnesota,
Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Colorado,
Wyoming and Missouri). The Minnesota National Guard
provides the Division Headquarters and is located in Rosemount
(Main Command Post), and Inver Grove Heights (Tactical Command
Post) both are southern suburbs of the Twin Cities.

Today, the division has undergone much change due to
transformation. The entire division is projected to have
transformed by Training Year 2010.

A Red Bull Soldier in Iraq.

The 34th Infantry Division has deployed approximately 11,000
soldiers to fight in the Global War on Terrorism.

In May 2004, the 1st Battalion, 168th Infantry
Regiment,(augmented by Company D, 2nd Battalion, 135th Infantry
Regiment ), 2nd Brigade, 34th Infantry Division, and with nearly
100 key positions filled by members of the 1st Battalion (IRONMAN),
133rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 34th Infantry Division,
commenced combat operations at 13 Provincial Reconstruction Team
sites throughout Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom,
returning the Red Bull patch to combat after 59 years and earning
the Battalion the distinction of becoming the first unit in the
34th Infantry Division to wear the Red Bull patch as a
right-shoulder combat patch since WWII.

In March 2006, the first brigade of the 34th Infantry Division
commenced combat operations in central and southern Iraq as part of
Operation Iraqi Freedom,
marking the largest single unit deployment for the 34th Infantry
Division since WWII. With its return in July 2007, the brigade
became the longest serving unit (22 months total with 16 in Iraq)
in Iraq of the Army National Guard.

In an effort to re-create the Living Red Bull Patch from
Camp Cody, NM, in 1918, the 1st Brigade made its own Living
Patchon the parade field at Camp Shelby, MS prior to
its deployment to Iraq for OIF 06-08.

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Recent
campaigns

34th Infantry Division personnel have been activated for the
following recent operations: